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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. bass — low music
  3. content — the amount
  4. content — happy
  5. bass — the fish
  6. wax — to grow
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. foot — a measure
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. rest — what's left
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. rest — a break
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. rest — what's left
  19. craft — a skill
  20. craft — boats
  21. foot — the bottom
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. wax — in the ear

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com